Morgan Stanley Mulls Smith Barney'less Future

"If you keep switching things in and out, people have no way of building that trust because you're constantly changing," says Frankel. "They look to that brand so they can invest their loyalty and their money into it. They want to know it's going to be here today, here tomorrow and was here for a long time."

Derek Pilecki, an alumni of Goldman Sachs' (GS) asset management group who founded the investment firm Gator Capital Management in 2008, suggests that the disappearance of Smith Barney may be an issue of sentimentality more than one that will affect its ability to serve customers well. In a comment echoed by other investment professionals, Pilecki says Citi had "underinvested" in the Smith Barney brand in the five years leading up to the joint venture with Morgan Stanley, which diminished its value more than a name change will.

"I'm sad about losing the Smith Barney brand from the marketplace," says Pilecki, "but the retail brokerage industry has had constantly evolving brands."

-- Written by Lauren Tara LaCapra in New York.

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